Preview – FN P-12 Shotgun – Rack and Roll

What can you say about a pump shotgun? Bang, chik-chik, bang, chik-chik, bang. It’s almost boring…but it’s exactly that simplicity and boring reliability that so many people love about pump shotguns. So how do you make a pump shotgun more exciting, without going overboard on bling and tacticool nonsense? FNH has a few tricks up its sleeve with the P-12 shotgun.

Plug and Play Based on the venerable Winchester design introduced with the Model 1200 and 1300 from the ’60s and ’70s, the FNH P-12 is every inch a fighting 12-gauge shotgun, pretty much ready to go right out of the box. Assembled in Portugal alongside its semi-automatic SLP sibling, the P-12 features an 18-inch barrel, front and rear sights, and a rail for optics.

The first notable characteristic of the P-12 is that the bore and chamber are chrome-lined for longevity and corrosion resistance (also making it easy to clean). Secondly, it has a rotating bolt design that locks up securely into lug recesses in the barrel extension and does not rely upon the receiver, which is made from aluminum alloy. This design provides a very strong and reliable lockup. Its dual action bars are stout and move smoothly.

The fit and finish on this shotgun are impressive. The matte surface treatment is attractive and everything about the gun feels solid. The controls are aggressively checkered, and there is a sling swivel stud on the magazine cap. FNH seems to have thought of everything.

The P-12 holds five rounds in its magazine tube and one in the chamber, for a total of six. You can affix a magazine extension (look for one made for the Winchester 1200/1300), but would have to remove dimples in the existing tube to allow the follower to pass. Six is a reasonable load-out, and while we find it hard to turn down additional magazine capacity, there are plenty of defensive shotgun aficionados who espouse the overall balance that comes with a modest tube as found on the P-12. Upon removing the magazine cap, you will find a retainer that captures the magazine spring. Depress and rotate it to remove the retainer, allowing you to remove or install a magazine plug limiter for hunting. In case you’re wondering, removing the retainer entirely does not buy you any additional magazine capacity…we checked, naturally.

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